Did you miss your chance to buy one of the five CLK-GTR Roadsters that Mercedes-Benz built in the 1990s? If so, you’re in luck because a 1999 CLK-GTR Roadster with only six kilometers (less than four miles) on the clock is scheduled to be auctioned off next month in England.
Fully functional, the car is currently owned by an anonymous Dutch collector who seemingly bought it as a long-term investment. It was stored indoors and it has never been driven on a public road, though we imagine it was started up on at least a semi-regular basis in order to keep all of the mechanical components in working order. The lone picture published by auction house Bonhams shows the GTR is truly in like-new condition.
The GTR is a CLK in name only. Remembered as Mercedes’ first-ever mid-engined race car, the carbon fiber-bodied coupe was designed to compete against big names like Porsche and Ferrari in the GT Championship series that was launched in 1997. It only spawned a street-legal model because FIA regulations dictated that manufacturers had to sell at least 25 examples of each car in order to compete in the category.
The CLK-GTR Roadster is powered by a mid-mounted naturally-aspirated 6.9-liter V12 engine that makes 603 horsepower at 6,500 rpm and 539 foot-pounds of torque at 5,250 rpm. Bolted to a six-speed sequential gearbox controlled by huge shift paddles, the 12-cylinder sends the 3,100-pound CLK-GTR from 0 to 62 mph in 3.7 seconds and on to a top speed of about 200 mph.
The Mercedes-Benz CLK GTR is scheduled to cross the auction block on June 26th during the Goodwood Festival of Speed. Bonhams estimates the roadster will sell for anywhere between €1.9 million and €2.5 million, sums that convert to about $2.1 and $2.7 million, respectively. If those figures are accurate, the CLK-GTR was a decent investment for the current owner because it cost no less than 3,074,000 German marks (roughly $1.7 million) when it went on sale 16-years ago.
